No, Bates stamps are not obsolete. Bates numbering TIF, PDF or native files with the right tool is simple. MasterFile shows you how.
At first glance, it might seem that Bates stamps or Bates numbers are quaint and a relic of a bygone era. Paper will soon no longer be the dominant form of filings. And, therefore, neither would stamping pages with a hand-held Bates stamp nor stamping PDF or TIF files with special Bates numbering applications be done anymore. But, as we’ll see, Bates numbers are more resilient than you might think.
What is Bates numbering?
The Bates stamp, or Bates numbering, that is used to sequentially number a set of legal documents has been around now for well over 150 years. Originally, Bates labels were manually applied – even on business and medical documents. Despite being a tedious process, courts and law firms adopted Bates labelling because Bates numbers made referencing legal documents and specific pages, especially in transcripts, via sequential numbering, simple: all parties were able to refer to a single document from the evidence under discussion via the Bates label rather than describing the document, a page and a line number – something that was highly cumbersome before Bates labels and without which, would remain so even today despite advanced search. It was, however, the late 19th century inventor Edwin G. Bates who made the Bates label ubiquitous. His patented, compact, hand-held device, the Bates Stamper, applied a self-incrementing, sequential, four-digit numerical Bates stamp from 0000 to 9999 each time the stamper’s handle was depressed ending the drudgery of manual application of Bates stamps to a collection of documents.
The question today, with almost all evidence in electronic and native document formats, is how do you Bates stamp native and traditional productions and get a handle on all of that?
Let’s take a look.
It seems to throw a wrench into responding to disclosure requests when attorneys are suddenly faced with a task they hadn’t thought was easy enough: applying Bates numbers to native files. Attorneys are so used to Bates stamps on each page of a document collection, it’s novel for the document production process to omit page-level Bates numbers on an entire document.
But there’s a good reason why.
Today, evidence is almost entirely electronic in a format native to the authoring application i.e. a DOCX file from Word, XLSX from Excel, native EML or MSG files, and so on. And therefore, it’s now commonplace to request and have to produce original native format files to opposing counsel – which actually saves the cost of converting to image or vector format first (i.e. into a TIF or PDF file). Recipients having received metadata associated with those files (as it’s within the files themselves) benefit too. For example, an image of an Excel spreadsheet conveys far less insight into how its calculations are derived when you aren’t able to see its underlying formulas.
So what to do? The answer is to use unitization with native files. In this scenario, a file-level Bates like number sequentially numbers each file, but, and here’s the key, unlike a Bates number, the number is only used as the filename (or filename prefix) and no Bates numbers or Bates labels are stamped or applied on the file’s contents. Since productions are usually accompanied by a load file with metadata that also includes the original filename and path of each file being produced, the production set can be loaded into any review tool. In MasterFile, that’s a very simple process; you can do it yourself in a couple of clicks using its Express Load wizard.
Native production splits the Bates numbering process. The producing party applies file-level Bates like consecutive numbering but the ability to paginate and Bates number each page belongs to the party who prints the evidence for use in a proceeding. This is the key concept when managing native disclosures. Everything thereafter proceeds as traditionally expected: all parties can reference the printout via the Bates label as they have always done.
It works because as only a tiny fraction of items produced in discovery ever get used in court, you only need Bates stamp or Bates label the set of documents that leaves your office for use in a proceeding. Documents that arrive at your office need not be stamped (they would be managed in your document review tool; naturally we suggest MasterFile). And, although some law firms do Bates stamp everything that’s incoming with a unique document ID, let’s be clear: that’s not Bates stamping but simply a method of indexing.
Therefore, that tiny fraction of disclosures printed for use as exhibits, and paginated and Bates stamped, can be referenced by all parties by Bates number; between yourself and opposing counsel, native files are easily referred to by their file-level Bates like number, or other meta data like date and file type or author, and specific content.
It’s clear that native production won’t end the use of Bates numbers or Bates labels; neither will Bates numbers be displaced in the foreseeable future, or any time soon, as the simplicity of pinpointing material being discussed quickly by document number, page and line number is just hard to beat.
MasterFile gives you the ability to unitize native files and Bates and endorse within itself. It generates PDF, TIF and native format disclosure sets automatically so you can easily and quickly respond to requests to produce in a timely manner. Its optional production settings go beyond just Bates numbering. It tracks all productions so you can pinpoint any document in any production in two clicks. And search by, within or for a Bates range. When you do need on-page Bates stamping, as the party producing documents for Court, there’s no need to print and stamp manually, nor the need to export documents to a separate program such as Adobe Acrobat for Bates numbering. Stamping complete headers, footers and watermarks, too, is an effortless task. Everything you need, is built-in.
The simple 3-step process
MasterFile has what you need to tackle production, from the small to the complex in PDF, TIF or native formats using a simple 3-step, point and click process without the need for extra tools like Adobe Acrobat. Production takes place in a MasterFile ‘briefcase’ which also serves as an archive for the produced documents. Originals are left untouched in the case database, where all productions and multiple disclosures of documents are automatically tracked.
It’s easy to meet tight schedules too: automate tasks to avoid common errors, link production sets, and reuse production settings to save time and get a head start on whatever’s next.
A single copy of every document and transcript is maintained in its ‘document record’, i.e. MasterFile profile, which greatly simplifies trial preparation too. Deposition exhibits can be given new Bates numbers, new dates recorded, and clean copies generated for use at trial, production or disclosure – since notes and annotations made throughout the life of the case remain in MasterFile.
Accumulating the documents to produce.
Production starts by you and/or your team accumulating the legal documents to be produced in a special MasterFile database called a briefcase. It takes one-click to get started. And you can collaborate on many different production requests, from the same or other matters, simultaneously.
Document review, selection and accumulation does not have to be completed at one sitting but can be completed as time is available or as documents are found. So you can add, review or remove documents from the document collection in the production briefcase at anytime – even if you’re on the road and disconnected from the office network.
Synchronization keeps everyone collaborating on the production up to date, automatically.
You’re automatically alerted if you try to add documents flagged as privileged or if the document has already been added to the briefcase for production, helping to prevent mistakes. MasterFile does not assign document/Bates numbers when documents are added to the briefcase, but only when production actually starts. This means “gaps” in Bates number sequences are impossible so you don’t have to deal with such complexities that plague other systems.
Manage your evidence, disclosures, production, case chronologies and case analysis more efficiently and more effectively in MasterFile. Win more – and have an easier time doing so!
See how MasterFile can help your firm.
Book a demo today →
Bar Exam Roundup – Uncertainty and chaos in the era of COVID-19 
